Visit #5 & #6

I thought that the college visits I did this summer would be my only ones, but lo and behold here we were in New York and opportunity struck! The two schools I applied to (and got accepted!) were Marymount Manhattan College in the Upper East Side and The New School down in Greenwich Village. And while I went to go do that, Sophia went to go check out Admitted Students Day at Barnard! With decisions so close, I'm really down to the wire so I was hoping that visiting these schools in person would give me a better idea of what direction I would like to proceed after graduation. So now I guess it's time to weigh the options...

1. Location - With one of the schools in the Upper East Side, the other in Greenwich Village, both locations were amazing. Then when you factor in the fact that its also New York, it just keeps getting better and better. The appeal of the big city is strong -- but if I had to pick between the two locations, Greenwich Village would win, hands down. 
2. Size - No need to worry about that with either school. Both are small, liberal arts institutions and the student body, including graduate school, is less than ten thousand. And in the case of the New School, the specific college within The New School I was accepted into, has a student body of about 1,350.  
3. Curriculum - The more I write about these schools, the more I realize just how similar they are. And that if it comes down to choosing between these two, how difficult that decision will be. They both have an open curriculum -- however The New School is much more lax in this are. Where Marymount has a small required core curriculum, the New School has none. That means I could have complete free reign over my education without taking any courses that I don't want to. As appealing as that sounds, that could potentially also be a very bad thing for me haha. 
4. Student Life - Vibrant, bubbly, quirky, I mean it is New York. I was on a guided tour of Marymount so I didn't get to discover much of what the students were like, but for The New School I called up an old friend of mine who goes there for Theatre. He walked me around, showed me all of the buildings and the dorms, and we even bumped into a couple of his friends on the street (I still love that about New York) and they were very welcoming. My only fear, with whatever school I end up at, is that I'll commit to four years there but  I won't fit in with the students. 
5. Accommodations - Sadly, I didn't get to see the dorms at either school. But from what I've read online Marymount has apartment like dorms which is very appealing because it is suite-style living and the people in eau apartment also share a small living room and kitchen. That I like very much! I think New School has conventional dorms (your singles, doubles, and quads) 
6. Writing Program - Being liberal arts schools, both are very writing intensive. I could major in English with a minor in Creative Writing, or I could even major in Creative Writing if I'm feeling risqué! 
7. Finances - And then theres the catch. I received a scholarship from both schools, yet it doesn't even begin to cover tuition. Marymount is expensive, but don't even get me started on New School. I appealed to both for more financial aid so now we just have to wait and see what happens...

It's funny how with two weeks left before I have to make my decision, this should be getting easier, I should be taking schools off my list, but in reality it's only getting harder. Gah!